The Hidden Almanac for Friday March 21st, 2014 |
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Episode 82 |
Previous episode: 2014-03-19 |
Next episode: 2014-03-24 |
Summary[]
Today the Brick Standards were established. It is also the day the first Stabbing Rock chick was hatched, and the day the incense factory burned. It is the Feast Day of St. Dwight, and in the garden, there are alliums.
Be Safe, and Stay Out of Trouble.
Transcription[]
Welcome to the Hidden Almanac, I’m Reverend Mord.
Today is March 21st, 2014.
It is the one-hundredth-anniversary of the Brick Standards, which established basic rules for the composition of building materials, specifically red clay bricks. This would be of note only to scholars, except that at the time, there was an extraordinary lobbying effort against the Brick Standards, which were perceived as government imposition in the livelihoods of the working class. Bricks were thrown through the windows of Parliament, with screeds written on them. The Prime Minister of the time said that he could have built quite a nice house with the number of bricks thrown at him over the course of the debate. Eventually the standards were passed, the world failed to end, and everyone got on with their lives.
And it was on this day in 1943 that the first Stabbing Rock chick was hatched, a crossbreed between a Barred Rock hen and an unknown rooster who briefly visited the coop, wooed the ladies, and vanished as mysteriously as he had come. The Stabbing Rock chicken breed (named for the coop’s location in Stabbingham) is a tall, nearly black chicken with dark gray and blue-black stripes and a stark red comb. Hens are good layers, although the roosters wander a lot and croon rather than crow.
And it was on this day that the Whopping Good Smells incense factory burned to the ground in the industrial district of the city. The cause of the fire was unknown, but the entire city reeked of Nag Champa for over a week.
It is the Feast Day of Saint Dwight, patron of unpleasant growths. He attained sainthood when he developed a boil in the shape of Our Lord. His representations are unfortunate and his worshippers are thankfully few.
In the garden, alliums are coming up. Alliums, or ornamental onions, are a reliable bulb in dry soil, but prone to rot in damp soils. Some popular varieties include “White Knight” and “Star of Troyzantium.” The “Blighted Blob” cultivar was originally developed for the Echo Harbor market, but met with little success, as the gardeners of that town reportedly said “We see scarier things than that before breakfast.”
The Hidden Almanac is brought to you by Red Wombat Tea Company, purveyors of fine and inaccessible teas. Red Wombat --- “We Dig Tea.”
Also sponsored by the documentary “House of Screaming Lemurs,” a film described by critics as “two and a half hours of ear-splitting fun!” Now playing in 3-D!
That’s the Hidden Almanac for March 21st, 2014. Be safe, and stay out of trouble.
Outro[]
Out of Character
The Hidden Almanac is a production of Dark Canvas Media, written by Ursula Vernon and performed and produced by Kevin Sonney. Our theme music is Moon Valley and our exit music is Red in Black, both by Kosta T. You can hear more from Kosta T at the Free Music Archive. All other content is copyright 2013, Ursula Vernon.